Chapter 6: Hanging Xie Zijing on the rooftop and relentlessly battering him with a Level 30 gale
Tang Cuo’s panda was somewhere between an adult panda and a young panda. After a visual inspection, Qin Ge estimated that its body length was less than one meter.
Because it was relatively small, when it sat next to Tang Cuo like a little ball, it looked like a plush doll.
Xie Zijing squatted cautiously in front of the panda and reached out his hand cautiously.
“Can I touch it?”
Tang Cuo nodded.
Xie Zijing first touched the panda’s back, and the panda made a humming sound. He quickly withdrew his hand, but seeing that the panda was not uncomfortable, he reached out his hand again, this time touching its ears.
The panda turned its head to look at Xie Zijing and, after a moment, even closed its eyes, apparently finding Xie Zijing’s touch very comfortable.
Xie Zijing became increasingly excited. “Can I hold it?”
Tang Cuo hesitated a bit. “No, it might bite.”
Xie Zijing lowered his eyes in disappointment while rubbing the two semicircular ears and muttered, “I’m a good person.”
Xie Zijing, who was full of love for the panda, made Qin Ge uncomfortable.
He got up and walked away.
It was evening at the moment, and there were quite a few patients taking walks near the hospital’s inpatient building. A panda spirit animal was extremely rare, and soon, the chubby panda was surrounded by many people, all of whom wanted to touch it but were afraid to do so.
The panda lay on the grass, and Xie Zijing, after rubbing its ears, began to rub its little tail. It was very docile, moving its limbs on the ground, and its eyes were fixed on two half-zombified humans in the crowd.
“What are you looking at?” The half-zombified humans turned their heads and asked with hoarse voices. “What is this person touching?”
The person next to them explained, “It’s the spirit animal of a sentinel or guide. You can’t see it. It’s a panda.”
The wrinkled skin of the two people moved, and the muscles of their faces and mouths twitched. Their red eyes widened, and finally, they both let out a surprised and regretful sigh from their throats, “Oh!”
Qin Ge recalled some things.
A spirit animal that only a Sentinel and Guide could create and see—the existence of a spirit animal had once led people to believe that Sentinels and Guides were a higher order of humans.
The Sentinels, with better physical fitness, stronger explosiveness, and greater agility, paired with Guides, who had heightened emotional sensitivity, deeper empathy, and more meticulous thoughts, had always been the backbone of the battlefield. They complemented each other, with one responsible for bursts and attacks while the other soothed and suppressed.
Sentinels who were easily out of control when in action were prone to “sea area” problems. The guide was responsible for guiding the sentinel’s “sea area”, calming down the violence and mania, and keeping the sentinel’s emotions under the safest line.
They were both the most trusted and feared warriors during wartime.
However, in peacetime, Sentinels and Guides didn’t seem as special.
As reports emerged from various special humans like underground people, half-zombified individuals, Snowmen, and others, confirming that some mutants had undergone changes in their eye structures that allowed them to see Sentinels and Guides’ spirit animal, Sentinels, Guides, and their spirit animal became less mysterious. Spirit animal live streaming, which had been strictly prohibited, gradually resurfaced, and many Sentinels and Guides began profiting from it, becoming well-known internet celebrities.
Qin Ge thought to himself that being less mysterious was quite good.
He hoped to be just an ordinary person in the midst of a crowd.
He looked up at the panda and noticed Xie Zijing jogging over to his side.
“No more touching?” Qin Ge asked.
“Feeling jealous?” Xie Zijing inquired.
Qin Ge couldn’t quite grasp what was going on inside this person’s head.
“I’ve had enough. Pandas are great, adorable yet fierce,” Xie Zijing said, “the ideal partners. What exactly is your spirit animal?”
Qin Ge thought that Xie Zijing’s interest had shifted to Tang Cuo and the panda, but he didn’t expect him to be so persistent. He quickly changed the topic, “By the way, where are you staying now?”
“At the Crisis Management Office,” Xie Zijing replied.
Qin Ge was taken aback. “Do they have dorms at the Crisis Management Office?”
“It’s not a dorm,” Xie Zijing explained, “it’s the Crisis Management Office.”
Qin Ge asked, “I thought I locked it. How did you open the door?”
Xie Zijing replied, “I picked the lock.”
Qin Ge: “…”
Xie Zijing: “Don’t worry, I’m quite skilled. The lock is intact.”
A raging storm brewed in Qin Ge’s mind once again.
Just as he was about to get angry, his phone suddenly rang.
After glancing at the screen, Qin Ge immediately stepped aside to answer the call.
While Xie Zijing continued to chuckle at having provoked Qin Ge, Tang Cuo had already put away his panda and approached them.
“I won’t go back to the Crisis Management Office,” Qin Ge said as he returned to their side. “I’m going home for dinner tonight; you two go with Bai Xiaoyuan.”
He finished speaking and turned to leave immediately, suppressing his inner anger, and completely ignoring Xie Zijing.
As the subway swayed, Qin Ge held his phone, feeling agitated and upset.
Poor Xie Zijing, annoying Xie Zijing, but… also homeless Xie Zijing.
Was it really so difficult to find a place to stay? Qin Ge searched the internet and found plenty of rental information, but they were all quite expensive. Each real estate agent was exaggerating, using wide-angle lenses to make a 15-square-meter room look like 40 square meters, making it all seem untrustworthy. Xie Zijing had just arrived and wasn’t familiar with the situation here, and now he was traveling with them, so he had no time to search for a place to stay. It seemed reasonable that he couldn’t find a place to rent.
After arriving at the station, Qin Ge picked up his phone and called Bai Xiaoyuan.
Bai Xiaoyuan had just dropped off Tang Cuo and Xie Zijing at the Crisis Management Office. Qin Ge asked her to help Xie Zijing find a convenient and reasonably priced place to stay as soon as possible and to keep an eye out for one. He couldn’t keep breaking into the crisis management office every night.
“You and Tang Cuo can both help keep an eye out,” Qin Ge said. “He can’t sleep in there by picking locks every night.”
Bai Xiaoyuan was puzzled, “Picking locks? Staying in the Crisis Management office?”
Qin Ge explained, “That’s what he said he did last night. It’s really tough.”
Bai Xiaoyuan responded, “No, he didn’t. He slept in the reception room last night. There’s a bunk bed in the reception room. He slept well, and when I arrived this morning, he seemed quite energetic. He even asked me where to find the best jianbing nearby.”
Qin Ge: “…”
Bai Xiaoyuan: “Are you still helping him?”
Qin Ge: “Yes.”
After hanging up the phone, Qin Ge walked calmly, but in his mind, he had already hung Xie Zijing on the rooftop, relentlessly battering him with a Level 30 gale.
Qin Ge’s “home” was not technically his own home.
When he was 14 years old, he became an orphan and was in a state of confusion about where to go next. At that time, the director of the Crisis Management Office, Qin Shuangshuang, adopted him.
His original name was Yang Ge, but later, at the urging of Qin Shuangshuang to avoid future complications, he changed his last name. He lived in Qin Shuangshuang’s home for ten years. He didn’t call Qin Shuangshuang “mother” and wouldn’t refer to Qin Shuangshuang’s husband, Jiang Leyang, as “father.” He just had an aunt, an uncle, and a younger brother. Life seemed to have returned to its original state.
As if there had been no gap.
As soon as Qin Ge opened the door, he immediately smelled the fragrance emanating from the kitchen.
Jiang Leyang, wearing an apron, came out of the kitchen, happily waving a spoon. “We’re having chicken stew with tea tree mushrooms tonight.”
There were some white hairs in Jiang Leyang’s hair, but he didn’t mind at all and refused to dye it because Qin Shuangshuang had once said that his white hair was quite handsome. After nearly twenty years of marriage with Qin Shuangshuang, the couple’s aesthetics had become highly synchronized, and they were in complete agreement.
Qin Ge sneaked into the kitchen and looked around, realizing that Jiang Leyang had prepared dishes that Qin Shuangshuang liked.
Qin Shuangshuang had just returned from a business trip and was in the living room reading a book. Her brow furrowed tightly. Her book was covered in many long, narrow sticky notes. When she saw Qin Ge, her first comment was a critique: “Gao Tianyue’s academic standards have declined. What is this? It’s too perfunctory.”
Qin Ge nodded in agreement.
Seeing through his perfunctory response, Qin Shuangshuang put down her book and began discussing her recent trip to the Western Regional Office for a meeting with him.
After chatting for a while, Qin Ge’s phone received a message.
The message was from Bai Xiaoyuan.
[Qin Ge, Crisis Management can’t apply for Cai Mingyue’s assistance in investigating the case; it’s a bit complicated. I’m continuing to review past records, and I’ll explain more tomorrow.]
“Work-related matters?” Qin Shuangshuang asked.
With a furrowed brow, Qin Ge nodded.
Clearly piqued, Qin Shuangshuang inquired, “Is it confidential?”
The reason she left Crisis Management years ago was due to a highly serious incident that occurred during her tenure there. Although she had no involvement in the incident, she was quickly transferred away and has been working at the Center for Special Human Education and Employment Guidance ever since.
She had always been curious and eager to know about Crisis Management’s affairs.
And she had many grievances regarding her successor, Gao Tianyue.
Qin Ge only told her that he had some new developments at work and was currently investigating a doctor at 267th Hospital. He asked Qin Shuangshuang if she knew Cai Mingyue.
Qin Shuangshuang chuckled, “Of course, I know her. What woman giving birth at 267th Hospital doesn’t know her? She was the one who delivered Xiao Chuan. Is what you’re investigating related to Cai Mingyue?”
Qin Ge replied, “Possibly.”
Qin Shuangshuang looked somewhat surprised. After thinking for a moment, she lowered her voice, “Qin Ge, I’ve ventured into Cai Mingyue’s ‘sea area'”
Qin Ge was taken aback.
Like him, Qin Shuangshuang was currently one of the five registered psychological adjusters in the country. The reason she had insisted on adopting Qin Ge in the first place was because she valued his abilities and didn’t want to waste his talent. She also wanted to protect him under her wing.
Qin Ge knew that Qin Shuangshuang had much more experience than him. He couldn’t help but ask, “Is there a problem with her ‘sea area’?”
Qin Shuangshuang nodded, “Definitely an issue. But I couldn’t delve deep enough. During the snorkeling phase, when I discovered that her deep consciousness held some significant secrets, her ‘sea area’ went into riot.”
Qin Ge’s tense body suddenly relaxed.
A riot… Qin Ge was extremely surprised. Riot was a specific concept in the field of sea area studies, referring to an extreme situation where the intruder was forced to immediately withdraw due to resistance from the “sea area.”
“I found it very unusual at the time. Cai Mingyue came to me voluntarily. She said she couldn’t sleep well at night, and when she fell asleep, she would have nightmares. Sometimes she would suddenly wake up in her dreams, finding herself standing in the kitchen, holding scissors and a fruit knife, as if preparing for surgery,” Qin Shuangshuang said. “It was the first time I had encountered someone seeking help voluntarily, and yet resisting forcefully.”
“…Because you stumbled upon a secret she didn’t want to reveal?” Qin Ge couldn’t help but ask, “What secret is it? What does its form look like?”
Qin Shuangshuang shook her head. “Qin Ge, have you forgotten our confidentiality principles?”
Qin Ge said, “There are exceptions to confidentiality too. This is an exceptional situation.”
Qin Shuangshuang replied, “Confidentiality exceptions are determined by the Psychological adjuster, or can you provide me with more information?”
Qin Ge: “…”
Qin Shuangshuang was trying to gather specific information about the investigation from him, but he couldn’t reveal it.
After a brief standoff, Qin Shuangshuang stood up and said, “Forget it, let’s eat.”
As she passed by Qin Ge, Qin Shuangshuang pinched his cheek. “Not easy to deceive now, huh?”
Qin Ge didn’t feel any pain; instead, he smiled.
When Jiang Xiaochuan returned home, the dishes on the table had cooled down a bit.
He was happy to see Qin Ge and rushed towards him after taking off his shoes. However, after running a few steps, he caught a glimpse of Qin Shuangshuang’s stern gaze and changed direction, heading to the kitchen to wash his hands.
Outside the kitchen, Qin Shuangshuang looked worried. “I don’t think he’s taking the high school entrance exam seriously. It’s so late, and he’s still out playing soccer.”
Jiang Leyang was more optimistic. “Didn’t he just finish the practice exam? He can’t just sit and study all the time; he needs to exercise too. Fifteen or sixteen is the time to grow, and physical activity is beneficial.”
It wasn’t until Jiang Xiaochuan finished cleaning up and sat down that the meal officially began.
Jiang Leyang was skilled in cooking, and everyone at the table enjoyed the meal heartily. Qin Shuangshuang kept her attention on her son, asking him repeatedly if his grades had improved. Jiang Xiaochuan lowered his eyebrows and pretended to have lost his appetite, saying, “I’m not hungry.”
Qin Shuangshuang had no choice but to stay quiet and turn her attention to Qin Ge.
“There’s an intern teacher at our center who wants your phone number. Should I give it to them?”
Before Qin Ge could respond, Jiang Xiaochuan suddenly got nervous. “No! Mom, don’t introduce potential partners to my brother randomly.”
Jiang Leyang and Qin Shuangshuang exchanged a quick glance.
Jiang Xiaochuan defended himself, “My brother has high standards, you guys don’t understand.”
“Do you understand?” Qin Shuangshuang sneered, “Jiang Xiaochuan, which teacher did you show your brother’s picture again?”
Jiang Xiaochuan’s facial expression froze, and his eyes darted around as he looked to Jiang Leyang for help.
“Tell the truth,” Jiang Leyang didn’t back him up either, “which subject didn’t go well in your mock exam this time?”
Dejectedly, Jiang Xiaochuan admitted, “Physics…”
Qin Ge was alarmed, not just for Jiang Xiaochuan but also for the chopsticks in Qin Shuangshuang’s hand.
“Our physics teacher is really handsome!” Jiang Xiaochuan was still trying to argue, “My brother will definitely like him.”
“Jiang Xiaochuan, I’m warning you again,” Qin Shuangshuang glared at him, “if you continue to use your brother to get close to teachers, you’ll be staying in the dormitory from now on. Don’t come back on weekends either; your dad doesn’t have that much time to cook for you!”
Jiang Xiaochuan dared not speak again and focused on eating his food diligently.
Enjoying a home-cooked meal for a change, Qin Ge felt content. Jiang Leyang had prepared extra, so Qin Ge packed some in a lunchbox to take back to his apartment. The next day, he made some rice and brought the meal to work in a thermos.
As he approached the entrance of the Crisis Management Office, Qin Ge noticed someone dashing across the road when the pedestrian light was still flashing. The person was heading towards him.
Today, Xie Zijing appeared quite different from the previous days. Qin Ge noticed his fluffy hair and clean chin and immediately concluded that he must have taken a proper shower yesterday.
“Where did you stay last night?” he casually asked.
Xie Zijing had a different packaging for the jianbing he bought today, but he seemed less enthusiastic about his meal. This made Qin Ge suspect that he might be from the Genju District.
“I stayed at Tang Cuo’s place,” Xie Zijing sipped on his soy milk and said, “His place is tiny; the living room is also the bedroom.”
“It’s good that Tang Cuo took you in; don’t be so unreasonable.”
As Qin Ge and Xie Zijing entered the Adjustment Department, Tang Cuo, who was inside the room, jumped up like his backside was on fire the moment he saw Xie Zijing.
Xie Zijing glanced at his jianbing and soy milk, then turned back to the corridor to have breakfast. Qin Ge, seeing Tang Cuo’s face filled with terror, pale as a sheet, with thick dark circles under his eyes, and red bloodshot lines in the whites of his eyes, immediately thought about the primary components of Xie Zijing’s “sea area,” and his face turned green.
“What did Xie Zijing do to you last night?” Qin Ge asked.
“Me?” Tang Cuo rubbed his face, trying to bring back some normal color, “He didn’t do anything to me, but his lion was terrifying! It stared at my panda all night!”
Sentinels and guides often enter a deep sleep state when they sleep, which can lead to a relaxation of consciousness, causing their spirit animal to automatically manifest.
Qin Ge instantly understood what had happened. Xie Zijing’s lion staring at the panda, likely due to his fondness for furry animals, made the panda extremely nervous. This, in turn, made Tang Cuo anxious, and he probably didn’t get a good night’s sleep at all.
“He even forbade me from putting the panda away!” Tang Cuo grabbed Qin Ge’s hand. “He said if I put the panda away, his lion would be unhappy, scratch the walls, roar at me, and even run around the neighborhood making a racket. I was so desperate; it was the most desperate night of this month!”
“This month?” Qin Ge asked, puzzled. “Why are you so precise about the calculations?”
Tang Cuo: “I’m going to die…”.
Qin Ge could only pat his shoulder and then his head. Tang Cuo was a few years younger than him, and at this moment, Qin Ge had a strange feeling as if he was consoling Jiang Xiaochuan.
So, he softened his heart.
This moment of softening led him to say something he immediately regretted.
“Let him stay at my place tonight.”
